Anti-Defamation League’s 2018 audit places New York among the states with the highest number of anti-Semitic incidents, including nine incidents on Staten Island and 93 incidents in Brooklyn

Congressman Max Rose issued the following statement on the Anti-Defamation League’s 2018 Audit of Anti-Semitic Incidents in New York, released today, which showed a 55 percent increase in Anti-Semitic Assaults in 2018, all of which occurred in New York City. The report also showed that after the tragic Tree of Life shooting in Pittsburgh, incidents of Anti-Semitism increased by 170 percent over the previous quarter.

“Just days after yet another tragic and vile act of hatred against Chabad of Poway synagogue, today’s report confirms what those in the Jewish community have long felt—anti-Semitism is on the rise,” Rose said. Not only has our community been devastated by national tragedies in Pittsburgh and San Diego, but as this report shows, acts of vandalism and assault are occurring right here in New York City far too often. It will take all of us, from social media companies, to government, to neighbors just looking out for one another, to push back against this hate and remove violence from our public discourse.”

In total, 340 incidents of anti-Semitism were recorded in New York last year, including nine incidents on Staten Island and 93 incidents in Brooklyn. Brooklyn also saw 13 of the state’s 17 recorded instances of anti-Semitic assault. The report also showed a 35 percent increase in vandalism of private property and a 39 percent increase in anti-Semitic incidents at New York State’s universities and colleges.

The report also showed some disturbing trends when it comes to extremism. In 2018, 13 percent of total anti-Semitic incidents were attributable to known extremist groups or individuals inspired by extremist ideology. While this was the highest level of anti-Semitic incidents with known ties to extremism since 2004, it also shows that anti-Semitism is not just isolated to the extremes of society.

In an effort to prevent the spread of violence and extremism on social media platforms, Rose, who chairs the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism, recently called on social media companies,including Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube to provide details on the investments these companies are making to prevent the exploitation of their platforms by terrorists and extremists.